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Chris Pratt Was an Amateur Stripper at Age 18

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Chris Pratt and Channing Tatum have more in common than one might think. Before he became one of the most ubiquitous TV and movie stars, Pratt says he earned a living as an amateur stripper.

"I was always a very much naked person. I loved to always get naked," the Parks and Recreation star tells Buzzfeed in a revealing new interview. "I was very free, so I thought, 'I may as well get paid.'"

At age 18, he book several gigs—mostly bachelorette parties—and even danced at his friend's grandmother's birthday party. "It was a surprise. I don't know how it got around to them, but they paid me $40," he recalls. "I was never like Magic Mike, you know. I did go one time and audition on a stage for a club, but I don't think I got the job. I don't think I'm a very good dancer."

It wasn't the first—or the last—odd job that Pratt would work before a casting agent discovered him in Hawaii in 2000. In addition to painting murals and flipping burgers, the Minnesota-born, Washington-raised star also babysat, mowed lawns and more. "I was always very enterprising as a kid," Pratt explains. "I was always trying to find some way to make money."

When the time came to shoot Delivery Man (in theaters Nov. 22), Pratt had packed on 60 pounds—a far cry from his days as a stripper. "By gaining a s--t ton of weight, I affected not only the way I looked, but also that rhythm. I felt terrible. I felt mentally dull. I felt that I wasn't fulfilling my duties as a husband in the bedroom. I felt no sexual desire. I felt really, legitimately depressed," he tells the site.

"And it wasn't the first time I've been big through the course of my life," he continues. "I've always been just teetering on that scale and I've been bigger for different roles. And when I'm big, I have body image issues just like anybody else."

Pratt—husband to Anna Faris and father to son Jack—is no longer 295 pounds. In fact, the 34-year-old got ripped for his role in the upcoming Marvel movie Guardians of the Galaxy.

The actor says he "was really hoping that I'd be able to lose all the weight by the premiere, so it would be a choice; whereas if I was like, still 300 pounds, with this premiere coming up and I told people I gained weight for the role, they'd be like, 'Umm, I think you just got fat.'"

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Your information may be shared with other NBCUniversal businesses and used to better tailor our services and advertising to you. For more details about how we use your information, see our Privacy Policy. If you are located outside of the U.S., your information may be transferred to, processed and used in the U.S.